And the Glory of the Lord
Context: ‘And the glory of the Lord’ is
a chorus from Handel’s ‘Messiah’, a sacred oratorio first performed in a charity concert in Dublin in 1742 to help the poor prisoners of the city. And the Glory of the Lord is the 4th movement in the first part of ‘Messiah’,
which tells
about the promise that Christ will come to save the world.
Texture: The texture is monophonic [one melody line only] and homophonic [chordal] with some short contrapuntal [polyphonic] sections. The counterpoint [two or more melodies overlapping] is often imitative [a second part which enters later will imitate the first] and sometimes Handel combines 2 different melodic ideas contrapuntally. The number of voice parts singing at the same time varies from 1 to 4. The vocal textures contrast with each other e.g. lower 2 parts [bass and tenor] with top parts [soprano and alto] and middle parts [tenor and alto]. This provides interest and happens throughout the movement. The instruments often double the voices.
Melody: There are 4 contrasting ideas.
1 ‘And the glory of the Lord’. The first 3 notes outlining an A major triad are followed by a stepwise scale ending.
2 ‘Shall be revealed’. Two one bar descending sequences.
3 ‘And all flesh shall see it together’. A repetitive motif with 3 statements of a descending 4th idea. [a rising leap of a 4th followed by a scalic descent of a 4th ].
4 ‘For the mouth of the Lord has
spoken it’.
Long dotted minim repeated notes.
Metre and Rhythm:
Triple metre 3/4 time throughout, sometimes varied at cadences by the use of hemiola [using tied notes to give a feeling of 3 bars of duple metre]. Regular on-beat crotchet or quaver movement in the bass keeps the rhythm moving forward without pausing at cadences. Dotted rhythms, crotchet syncopation and hemiola are used. Longer note values are used to highlight ‘For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it’. Dramatic use of rests at the end emphasize that the Lord ‘hath spoken it’. The ending, which includes a total silence followed by a sustained cadence, is a typical feature of Handel’s choral style in fast movements.
Tonality: Major key [A major] : Joyful. Modulates to the dominant key of E major and the dominant of the dominant, B major. Major keys throughout. Begins and ends in A major.
Ritornello: The instrumental introduction in this piece is a ritornello [a ‘little return’] because some of this opening returns several times. The shorter repeats are called ritornelli.
Instrumentation: Violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello, double bass, harpsichord, oboes and bassoons [Instruments sometimes double the voice parts].The strings mainly double the voices, sometimes in a different octave to add variety. All instrumental parts are kept to a modest range. Some independent parts for strings are based on the vocal material, as in the opening ritornello, and the later shorter ritornelli. Some short sections are accompanied only by the continuo instruments [cello, bass and harpsichord], such as the first vocal entry. Keyboard player s were expected to improvise harmonies based on the figured bass part. Double basses play the same part as the cellos, but sound an octave lower. [Handel later added parts for oboes and bassoon].
Voice parts: Soprano, alto, tenor, bass
Harmony: The harmony is diatonic [using only notes belonging to the key]. The chords mostly use root- position and first inversion triads. The harmonic rhythm [the number of chord changes in a bar] changes quickly. Dissonances are created by suspensions [tied notes] and melodic decoration. Most of the cadences are perfect, with a few imperfect cadences, and a there is plagal cadence at the end. The keys are all major.
Musical Devices: Sequences [the same tune repeated at a higher or lower pitch], melisma [several notes sung to one vowel sound] on ‘revealed’, hemiola [2 bars of 3/4 time played as if they were in 2/4 time e.g. bars 9-10], suspensions [a chord containing a dissonant note which then resolves into a harmony note e.g. bars 9-10], imitation, dramatic use of rests, doubling parts for emphasis [For the mouth of the Lord has spoken it’.]
Word setting: Mostly syllabic [one note per syllable], but melismatic [several notes to one syllable] on the words ‘revealed’ and ‘flesh’ [using melisma]. The tenor and bass voice parts are doubled to emphasize ‘For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.’ There is a dramatic use of silence at the end to emphasize ‘hath spoken it.’
Single line writing [monophonic] Four part choir [homophonic]
Imitation [in the contrapuntal sections] Two ideas
together
Doubling of parts
Possible questions:
What musical features contribute to the joyful nature of the music?
1 Use of major keys: A major, E major, B major
2 ‘Allegro’ tempo marking
3 Lively triple metre [3/4 time] with feeling of one in a bar
4 Dotted rhythms
5 Use of hemiola
6 Harmonic rhythm one chord per bar or 2+1 [chord 1 for 2 beats then chord 2 for 1 beat]: making the music flow briskly.
Using diatonic chords [chords belonging to the key] Use of basso continuo
One joyful mood throughout the piece
Ornamented melody
Harpsichord playing the ‘continuo part’
Antiphonal contrast between monophonic line followed by homophonic tutti reply.
Contrast between monophonic, homophonic and contrapuntal textures
Strong melody and bass lines
Dance like rhythms
Use of hemiola
Small orchestra, using mainly string instruments
Modulations
restricted to related keys
Clearly contrasted stepped dynamics
Describe ways
in which the texture of the music is
contrasted.
How are the last three bars [ ‘hath spoken it ’ ] given a dramatic setting?
- Dramatic pause before the last vocal phrase
- Slower and broader tempo
- Longer note values
-
Strong homophonic chordal setting
- Loud dynamics
- Use of timpani
